How to verify that an iTunes backup is valid?

Is there a way to verify that a backup of an iPhone is valid (other than wiping the device and attempting to restore it :))?

I've had a recent catastrophic incident involving an iTunes encrypted backup, with the key stored on the keychain, that won't restore complaining of wrong key (Details on this question), and that's made me remember the old IT adage that:

Your backup strategy is only as good as your data restoration capabilities...

So, is there a way to verify that a backup that has complete successfully is valid and working (i.e., would restore itself successfully)? I don't have several iPhones to test, and wiping the "source" phone to attempt to restore it - and maybe fail! - doesn't seem like a good idea.

Thank a lot in advance.